"Turning Japanese" is a song by English band

the Vapors The Vapors are an English new wave and power pop band that initially existed between 1978 and 1981. They had a hit with the song "Turning Japanese", which reached No. 3 in the UK Singles Chart in 1980 and No. 36 in the US ''Billboard'' Hot 10 ...

, from their 1980 album ''

New Clear Days ''New Clear Days'' is the 1980 debut album by the British rock group The Vapors. It spent six weeks in the UK album charts, reaching a highest position of No. 44 in June 1980. It contains their best-known song, "Turning Japanese", which reached ...

''. It was an international hit, becoming the band's most well-known song. The song prominently features an

Oriental riff The Oriental riff, also known as the East Asian riff and the Chinaman lick, is a musical riff or phrase that has often been used in Western culture as a trope to represent the idea of China, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Taiwan, or a generic ...

played on guitar.

Overview

Songwriter David Fenton explained, "Turning Japanese is all the clichés about angst and youth and turning into something you didn't expect to." The band suspected they would score a hit with "Turning Japanese", even delaying its release in order to make it their second single, hoping to avoid becoming "

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

s". Nonetheless, they never matched the single's success. In Australia, it spent two weeks at No. 1 during June 1980, and, coincidentally, the song was also a minor hit in Japan. The music video was directed by

Russell Mulcahy Russell Mulcahy ( ; born 23 June 1953) is an Australian film director. Mulcahy's work is recognisable by the use of fast cuts, tracking shots and use of glowing lights, neo-noir lighting, windblown drapery, and fans. He directed music videos i ...

. The lyrics relate teen angst or alienation following a romantic breakup to feeling like being from a foreign culture.

Covers

Kirsten Dunst Kirsten Caroline Dunst (; born April 30, 1982) is an American actress. She made her acting debut in the short ''Oedipus Wrecks'' directed by Woody Allen in the anthology film ''New York Stories'' (1989). She then gained recognition for her rol ...

recorded a cover, with an accompanying video filmed directed by

McG The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hem ...

and produced by

Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts media (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts as well as co ae ...

in Tokyo in August 2009. The song was featured on the soundtrack of the 1997 movie ''

Beverly Hills Ninja ''Beverly Hills Ninja'' is a 1997 American martial arts comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Mark Feldberg and Mitch Klebanoff. The film stars Chris Farley, Nicollette Sheridan, Nathaniel Parker, with Chris Rock, and Robin Shou. The ...

'' covered by the band The Hazies. On the Canadian sketch comedy series ''

Second City Television ''Second City Television'', commonly shortened to ''SCTV'' and later known as ''SCTV Network'' and ''SCTV Channel'', is a Canadian television sketch comedy show that ran intermittently between 1976 and 1984. It was created as an offshoot from To ...

'',

Rick Moranis Frederick Allan Moranis (; born April 18, 1953) is a Canadian actor, comedian, musician, songwriter, writer and producer. He appeared in the sketch comedy series ''Second City Television'' (''SCTV'') in the 1980s and several Hollywood (film indu ...

performed a lounge-style version of the song as the character Tom Monroe.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1980 songs 1980 singles The Vapors songs United Artists Records singles Music videos directed by Russell Mulcahy Number-one singles in Australia Song recordings produced by Vic Coppersmith-Heaven Japan in non-Japanese culture